Category Archives: Tags

Post navigation

I participated in this challenge for the past two years and was so sad to see the host did not bring it back this year… Until I just found that a different blog is hosting it in 2017! I am so happy! This is just what I needed to stay motivated with my Netgalley reads. I am confident this is the year I will reach that elusive 80% feedback rate.

This year, I plan that at least two thirds of the books I read are from Netgalley. Since I am aiming for a total of 1 book per week that will make my yearly goal 35. I feel confident that I will read more, but I don’t want to put pressure on myself. After all, this is supposed to be fun, right?

Share this:

Like this:

I have found myself reading a lot more British literature lately and for the most part I have been very pleasantly surprised.

I was lucky to find this amazing challenge, hosted by Tales of Yesterday:

The goal is to read 12 books in 2017 by either of the following:

– Authors who were born in the UK, live in the UK and are published in the UK
– Authors who were born overseas but are CURRENTLY living in the UK and his/her books were/are being published in the UK first
– Authors who were born in the UK are currently living overseas but his/her books are being published in the UK first

Click the image to sign up and make sure you read all the rules if you want to be eligible for the prize.
Sadly I cannot as I am from Portugal.

I still want to participate in the challenge and am quite excited to do so.

I think I have had quite a good head start! Here are the books I read in January:

Fungoid by William MeikleScottish, living in Canada.

A Bitter Chill and A Deadly Thaw, both by Sarah Ward England

Dreams Before the Start of Time by Anne CharnockEngland

The Fire Child by S K TremayneEngland

Never Out of Sight by Louise StoneBorn in Africa, lives in England

Hope’s Peak (Harper and Lane #1) by Tony HealeEngland

And here are the ones I have read/plan to read in February and March:

Blink by K.L. SlaterEngland

The Breakdown by B.A. ParisBorn in England, lives in France

The Girlfriend by Michelle FrancesEngland

The House by Simon LelicEngland

Little Girl Lost (DI Robyn Carter #1) by Carol WyerEngland

And that’s it for now!

Do you enjoy British literature? What genres are your favourite?

What do you think of this challenge? Do you plan to sign up?

Share this:

Like this:

Over the past year my reading time drastically stooped due to work and other obligations but reading remains my #1 pastime and so even though I don’t want to put unnecessary pressure on me I do find that setting goals helps me stay motivated.

So here is what I hope 2017 will bring me:

1. Yearly Challenge
I have been reading around a book per week so I decided to set my yearly challenge on GoodReads to 52. Should be doable.

2. Netgalley Challenge
I am so thankful to this site. Thanks to it I have had access to wonderful books that I most likely would not have read otherwise. My long-term goal is to reach that elusive 80% feedback rate but for now I will settle for not getting below 70%.
I also intend to make Netgalley books at least two thirds of my total books read.

3. New Genre Challenge
Last year I read psychological thrillers for the first time and thoroughly enjoyed them.
I tried a couple of general/women’s fiction and liked them as well.
So this year I would like to keep trying to read stuff I normally wouldn’t. I have started with Crime novels and it has been a positive experience so far.

4. Mix it up
I need to read different genres and in various formats in order to prevent the dreaded reading slump. I have found this system works for me quite well, so I will be reading the odd paperback and listening to audiobooks in the middle of my Kindle reads.

5. Take a break
Last but not least, reading needs to be enjoyable so if I feel I need to take a break in order to keep it that way then I will. Sometimes I do need to watch a movie or play Sims or whatever. I find that when I get back to reading I do so with much more enthusiasm.

So those are my new year reading resolutions. My method of writing the review right after finishing the book should remain the same so I don’t expect things to change on that front.

Share this:

Like this:

So as you may know I am an avid Netgalley fan.
In fact, most of the books I read are provided by them.

For the last couple of months, my feedback rate has been hovering maddeningly close to 70%. Usually 67 or 68 and a couple of days ago it actually got to 69. However, there are so many amazing titles just waiting to be requested that I simply cannot resist.

Well no more! I vow that before the year ends I will get that rate to 70%. I shall commit to not requesting more books or at the very least to focus exclusively on Netgalley books. I have actually requested several different genres so it should not be a chore.

Who knows, maybe next year I will finally get to 80%, which not only gets you a spiffy new badge but increases your chances of getting accepted.

Wish me luck!

Share this:

Like this:

I have not done one of these in ages!
I don’t know her name but thank you for nominating me, Ajoobacat!
You should definitely visit her blog, her reviews are concise and very informative and have helped me on several occasions to pick out my next reads.

Rules:

Show the award on your blog
Thank the person that has nominated you
Share 7 different facts about yourself
Nominate 15 blogs of your choice
Link your nominees and let them know of your nomination

Seven facts about me:

1. I am extremely awkward in social settings but I thoroughly enjoy one on one interactions.

2. For the past few months I have woken up at 5ish am regardless of what time I went to bed and just cannot get back to sleep.

3. Some of my happiest moments are spent around nature, just feeling/listening/smelling it or reading as well.

4. Reading is definitely my #1 hobby but it has been increasingly difficult to find a book that sweeps me off my feet.

5. I don’t watch movies or shows on my computer.

6. For several months now I have switched from morning coffee to around 4 cups of tea and have found it makes me feel better and perks me up just as much, not to mention I get the liquids I need and never get otherwise.

7. I cannot recall ever buying an e-book.

15 Blogs I Nominate:

I am picking awesome people who take time to check out my posts and whose blogs I thoroughly enjoy.
So, in no particular order:

Share this:

Like this:

I participated in this challenge in 2015 when I caught word of it and it helped me tremendously in getting through my ever-growing Netgalley list.

This year, I managed to tackle 52 books from Netgalley, an average of one per week! Might not seem like much but there were times when I would just look and nothing seemed to strike my fancy or I would just request or even *gasp* buy a new book even though my physical and e-shelves were bursting.

I went through some pretty terrible books… But I kept digging and ended up finding some gems as well.

So I cannot recommend this challenge enough, it was well worth it.
It can be quite motivational, if you don’t let it overwhelm you and read only Netgalley titles.

So if you want to sign up for the 2016 challenge click the image:

Did you participate in 2015? How many books did you read?

Let me know if you will be participating in 2016!

Share this:

Like this:

Since I missed my 6 month anniversary last August 19th, I figured I would make a post about other achievements I got in the meantime today, the 7th month anniversary.
Since the last update, Ana’s Lair got the following badges:

1337 likes!

200 Followers!

Updates:

– I decided to get rid of the Authors text index in Books page. It is just too time-consuming updating two indexes, so I figured people would rather see the book covers and kept that one.

– The Polls page was pretty useless so I took it out.

– Added a new page: Chats. At the moment, it only features an index of my Random Chats feature posts. If I ever get around to doing other Chats, I will be keeping track there as well.

Thank you all who helped Ana’s Lair achieve these marks. It helps keep me motivated to blog.